As a certified foodie, I manage a fine blend of healthy eating habits and processed meals, otherwise known as junk food. Basically, junk meals come into play when I have a lot going on and can barely get the time to source my food items from the local market. For me, cooking is such a herculean task and I personally try to be mentally prepared for every cook day. It is for this reason that I also like to cook in bulk, so from time to time, I could just heat up the meal and eat. That way, I consume less junk and more naturally sourced home-cooked meals.
Sometimes, I make my own pastries. At least I know what goes in it, and I'm able to control it. I'm not usually one to patronise food vendors because of all the toxins that go into making their meals palatable and attractive. The only time I get to eat out is when I'm having pastries, and for every pastry that I get, I try to get the one that has some natural food source in it, like the Nigerian meat pies. This is one of my favourite pastries as it comes with beef, Irish potatoes and carrot fillings. If I'm not having this, I'm having chicken Shawarma, which comes with chicken and lots of vegetable fillings as well.
Other times, when it comes to drink options, instead of soda, I'd opt for yoghurt, fruit juices and the like. I even recently started making my own hibiscus tea, popularly known as Zobo, in Nigeria. This has, to a large extent, reduced drastically my soda intake. The fact that we are what we eat and whatever we consume will either keep the doctors away or make us their regular patients is another reason that I strive for a 7:3 ratio of naturally sourced vs processed meals. There was even a time when I was buying my food items straight from the farm in Northern Nigeria before the cost of transportation got overly expensive from the North to the South where I reside.
Now, I just source my items from local markets around, from the people who buy directly from the farm in bulk and sell them off immediately. Ever since I started navigating these almost perfect meal choices, I'm barely on medications like I used to. Last year, I just had to visit the doctor once, which was basically a stress-induced ailment. It's such a testimony, really, because there's this popular belief that people with genotype AA are always prone to malaria attacks. In fact, it's almost a norm for such people to always be on malaria medications.
I am AA, and for the greater part of my life, I lived on medications. It was not until after I was diagnosed with being Anaemic that even the doctor advised me to start eating healthy. Before, I rarely took water as every meal that I ate was often washed down with a bottle of cola. But seeing how far my health deteriorated and knowing I was putting up with something beyond Malaria, I prioritised my health over my cravings and changed my unhealthy eating habits.
Sometimes, a meal will taste better with a bottle of chilled Cola, but the thought of my health attacking me, sometimes leaving me struggling for air, especially when it rains, is always a quick reminder of mindfulness when it comes to my choice of meals.
ALL IMAGES ARE MINE
Posted Using INLEO
